living on the crafty side of life

Maya Road design team blog posts

During May, I've written two posts over on the Maya Road design team blog.

In the most recent post I've created a Sheet Calendar magnetic set, and given a simple step by step tutorial for making these yourself.

And this is the finished set...

Here's the calendar all set up on our little magnetic board. 

 

My other post showed a lampshade I've made for Emily using some Maya Road trinket flowers and scalloped rick rack.

 

 

Some instructions are on the Maya Road DT blog. Supplies/materials for the lampshade:

• Maya Road suede stitched blossoms, pink and cream;
• Maya Road light pink scallop ric rac (one of my favourite Maya Road trims);
• IKEA lampshade;
• Hot glue gun.

Thanks for visiting, have a great week.

Cheers

Fiona x

Day 8 of the Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

Well here we are, our last day, day 8, of our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganz.

I'm sharing some photos of a fabric Easter basket I've made for Phoebe. [I have a basket for Emily half sewn and will share photos of that one when I'm finished.]

The idea for the fabric basket came from Liesl's disdressed blog, where she made a very cute Easter fabric basket with bunny ears.

I've made a similar box style basket. The handles of my basket are semi-circles of fabric. I have quilted both fabrics (the outside and lining) to give the fabric extra body.

The finished basket measures about 20cm square, which gives a very generous space for the Easter bunny to fill with eggs on Easter morning.

 

 

I finished the top edge of the basket with rick rack.

 

I loved this cute fabric for the lining of the basket. It is a Japanese fabric by Sevenberry. The brown fabric for the outside is a Michael Miller fabric called Espresso Pod Ditz.

 

One of my blog readers, Julie, asked about the girls bunnies. We still have Bubbles and Butterscotch, they are nearly six years old, which I believe is "getting on" in bunny years. I admit to being a bit slack when it comes to taking photos of our little darlings lately (that's the bunnies, not the girls). So this afternoon in the fading light, I quickly took some photos of beautiful Bubbles.

 

Bubbles is still very cuddly and loves a snuggle.

 

Butterscotch was reluctant to leave the hutch this afternoon.... I will have to try one the weekend to take a better photo of her.

 

I'd like to thank everyone for visiting my blog during our Easter Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza. Mel and I have chatted abouthow much we've enjoyed sharing our Easter ideas. We're hoping to bring you some more crafty ideas sometime soon.

Have a happy Easter.

Cheers

Fiona x

Day 6 of the Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

Hello and welcome to day 6 of our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza. Today Mel and I have made some EggIE softies.

Meet Egg-wina, Egg-ward and Egg-berta, the EggIE softies for Easter. If you go over and visit Mel's blog, you'll have the opportunity to meet Egg-na.

I designed this EggIE pattern recently and I'm very happy to share the pattern and step by step instructions below.

Download Fiona's EggIE SOFTIE (A4) or Download Fiona's EggIE SOFTIE (letter) (for the US letter paper size)

EggIE softie tutorial (a pictorial step by step)

Step 1: Download pattern.

 

Step 2: Fold fabric and pin pattern to both layers. Cut out the pattern.

 

You will now have two pieces of fabric. We'll think of each as one side of EggIE.

 

Step 3: Take one piece of the fabric and fold along the "side" line as marked on the pattern. Sew the "side" seams above and below this fold line. Repeat for other piece of fabric.

 

You now have the two sides of EggIE.

 

Step 4: Place one side inside the other, right sides together. You will be sewing the front seam only. Leave the back seam open at this stage.

 

Turn EggIE right side out, so you can work on the eyes, etc.

 

Step 5: Cut two eye pieces. I used felt.

 

Position the eyes on EggIE and pin in place.

 

Sew eyes in position. I used a blanket stitch around the eye pieces.

This is the stage you can sew some ribbon around the EggIE. [All Easter eggs need a bow or decoration, including EggIE]. It is easier to sew the ribbon around the Eggie before we close the back.

Sew on some extra decorations if you would like.

 

Step 6: Turn EggIE wrong side out and matching the back seam, sew along the back seam, leaving a small gap for turning and filling.

 

Turn EggIE right side out and stuff. When you have finished stuffing, hand sew the opening closed.

 

You should now have a finished EggIE happily sitting with you.

 

The fabrics I have used to make my EggIEs are from the Charm Bracelet fabric collection by Windham Fabrics. The colours and patterns in this collection are perfect for Easter fabric projects. Ribbons are from Ribbons Galore. I have made the felted flower and circle pieces using the Clover felting gadget. I have also made my own buttons, covering self-cover buttons with fabric.

I'd love to see any EggIE relatives that may be created. Leave a link to your EggIE image in the comments field so I (and all readers) can pay him or her a visit.

Thanks for dropping by again. We've received some lovely comments and emails, so thank you for those as well.

I have been asked a few times about the Clover pom-pom makers I used in the previous post. I think Spotlight has had them, Mel has mentioned Big W has also sold them. I haven't had a chance to find them online yet, but I will do that later today.

We'll see you on Friday Monday for the next day of our Easter crafting ideas.

Edited: We've both had some sicknesses in our families this week, and our next post has been postponed 'til Monday. See you then.

Cheers

Fiona x 

Day 5 of the Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

We are half way through our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza. In this post Mel and I are sharing a couple of kids Easter crafting ideas. Mel has made some gorgeous little Easter eggs made from dough, which the kids would love making.

My little project is making fluffy chicks from pom-poms. There are a few readers of my blog who will know of my love affair with little fluffy chicks at Easter. This year I've decided to make my own. Kids love pom poms, they are fun to make, and even more appealing if you can create little creatures from them. 

Here's a little step by step to making a pom pom fluffy chick.

Step 1: Make two pom poms, one slightly larger than the other. I've used the Clover Pom Pom Maker gadgets. They make whipping up pom pomsvery quick and easy. When you tie around the centre of the pom poms, do not cut the wool ties off.

 

Step 2: Separate the wool ties, matching one tie from one pom pom with a wool tie from the other pom pom. Repeat with the other ties.

 

Step 3: Tie the pom poms together, pulling the wool ties tight so the pom poms sit very closely to each other.

 

Tie a few knots to hold the pom poms together. Snip these wool ties off close to the pom poms. You now have the body of the chick made.

 

Step 4: Add a beak and eyes to the face of the chick. You can also add little wings if you would like to the body of the chick. I've used felt for these little pieces, cardboard could also be used. A little craft glue will hold these bits in place.

 

And there you have them... your very own little (or big) fluffy chicks.

 

Thanks for dropping by to see our Easter craft ideas. Mel and I will be back on Wednesday for our next Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza post.

Hope you're having a great day.

Cheers

Fiona x

Day 4 of the Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

Hello, and thanks for dropping by for day 4 of our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza.

Today Mel and I have made some bunny softies using another bunny pattern which caught our eye out in blog-land. This bunny pattern has been designed by revoluzZza, and here is the link to the RevoluzZzionary Easter Bunny pattern and tutorial. Mel and I made this pattern into little bunny toys, but the pattern is great as a template for any Easter craft, as you will see in RevoluzZza's post.

 

This bunny pattern is so quick and easy to make, you'll be whipping up several of these little guys. I have used some pinwheel corduroy I bought recently from Spotlight. Spotlight had some gorgeous bright colours available in this material. The patterned fabric on the fuchsia bunny belongs to the Park Slope fabric collection by Erin McMorris. The small blue printed fabric on blue bunny is from Spotlight. Rick rack trim from Ribbons Galore.

 

 

 

Mel's bunny, Cocoa, can be seen on her blog. She has used a felted sweater and buttons to make Cocoa and she looks good enough to eat!

Hope you have a great weekend, and find a little time for your Easter crafting. See you Monday for our next post with some Easter crafting ideas.

 

Cheers

Fiona x

Day 3 of the Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

Welcome to day 3 of our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza. Mel and I are sharing some Easter bags and pouches ideas today. Our little bags and pouches are perfect for filling with Easter goodness and sharing with friends.

Mel has made some very cute little bags, you can find her post HERE.

I have made some Easter pouches. Last year I made little felt Easter egg bags which were super easy. This year I've changed these a little to make pouches from bubble corduroy and ribbons. These require a little more sewing than the felt bags, but they are still very quick and easy to make.

Easter project: Bubble corduroy Easter egg pouches.

Here's some step by steps to making my Easter pouches.

Step one: Cut fabric pieces 12cm x 28cm. Turn top and bottom hem over and sew.

 

Step 2:Create little ribbon tabs for threading ribbon in a later step. I cut grosgrain ribbon approximate 5cm long and sewed them onto the fabric approximately 2-3cm from the hemmed edges.

 

Here's a close up of the ribbon tabs:

 

Step 3:  Sew a piece of ribbon across the fabric. I've used some cute bunny ribbon from Ribbons Galore.

 

Below is a photo of what the pieces of fabric will look like at this stage:

 

Step 4: Fold fabric right sides together and sew side seams.

 

Step 5: Turn the little pouches right side out. I often talk before about production line crafting when making several pieces of the same project. This certainly can be applied to this project. Take one step at a time, cut all your fabric and pieces of ribbon. Then have your little pile of fabric at the sewing machine and stitch each step at a time. You'll soon have a little stack of bags.

 

Step 6: Thread ribbon through the tabs. Fill you little Easter pouches with goodies and you're ready for giving.

 

 

Thanks for joining Mel and I again today. We hope you'll visit us again on Friday for our next egg-ceptional egg-xtravaganza posts.

Have a great day.

Cheers

Fiona x

Day 2 of the Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

Welcome to day 2 of our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza, thanks for stopping by. Mel and I have been busy working on some little bunny softies. We have a couple of patterns picked out to make and share with you during our egg-xtravaganza.

Today's bunny comes from the very talented Betz White. Mel and I are using Betz's Cashmere Bunny pattern and tutorialto make our bunnies. Betz's tutorial has very clear instructions and photographs.

Here's my version of Betz's bunny.

I made my bunny from a soft polar fleece fabric. This fabric is thinner and softer than the regular polar fleece, it has a gorgeous velvety feel to it. I did see some in Spotlight the other day, but have forgotten the actual name of this fabric. It is VERY stretchy, so I backed it with some iron-onbatting and quilted it before cutting out my pattern pieces. This process just helped stabilize the fabric before sewing.

During the stuffing process I also added some lovely dried lavender along with the stuffing. So not only is bunny super soft, she smells good too. We've just had a couple of built-in wardrobes installed in our house and I thought this little bunny would look cute sitting up in Phoebe's wardrobe and make it smell nice too.

Make sure you visit Mel's blog for her gorgeous bunny. You can also see a few more bunnies over HERE.

Thanks for stopping by. See you on Wednesday for day 3 of our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza Easter craft ideas.

I just have to add, if you live in Sydney and are looking for a fabulous wardrobe company, you should consider SOHO Designs. From the design stage to installation they were great to deal with, very professional. I'm in storage heaven!

Cheers

Fiona x

Day 1 of the Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

Mel and I are sharing card and tag making ideas today. Mel has created gorgeous bunny cards today on her blog, take a peek HERE.

I've made an Easter bunny tag using one of my favourite little rubber stamps. Stamps are a great addition to your craft collection. You only need a few favourites and you can re-use them over and over again. I've made a larger tag so there is room to write a message to your tag recipient.

 

Here's a some steps to creating the tag.

Stamp the images onto smooth cardstock. I used StazOn ink this time as I didn't want to heat emboss my images. The StazOn dries quickly and I was able to colour the images without smudging.

 

Cut the images from the sheet. I will be framing my images, so I cut them slightly larger that the inner shape of my chosen frame.

 

Colour your stamped images:

 

Paint the chipboard frames:

 

Stick the stamped images behind the chipboard frames:

 

Cut a piece of felt slightly larger than the framed image (no need to attach at this point, I'll be stitching it to the card in a couple of steps):

 

Draw some lines across the tag. There are many journaling or ledger themed stamps available which you could also use. Drawing your own lines is very quick and easy:

 

Sew the framed bunny image to the corner of the tag. I sewed around the frame to hold this in place on the tag. I finished the felt piece off with a running stitch of embroidery thread:

 

Finish the tag with a big ribbon bow at the top.

This framed stamped image idea could be used on the front of little gift cards and on larger cards or added to the front of some packaging, like below. I have glued the frame onto the front of a pillow box which can then be filled with little chocolate Easter eggs.

   

Hope you enjoyed day 1 of our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza. If you make an Easter card or tag, leave a comment here on the blog with a link to your project. We'd love to share your creations as well.

Thanks for visiting. Until next Monday for our next Easter craft idea installment. Have a great weekend.

Cheers

Fiona x

Mel and Fiona's Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza

I hinted yesterday in my blog post about something egg-citing coming up.

Well I'm very happy to say that my crafty buddy and fellow Easter lover, Mel Goodsell and I are teaming up to bring you some Easter craft ideas over the next few weeks.

Starting Friday, we'll be creating Easter themed projects... some sewing, some cardmaking, some cooking, some surprises. Hope you will join us and visit us regularly to see what we come up with.

Now, you can look through Mel's previous Easter craft ideas on her blog. I thought I'd just list some of my Easter craft/cooking ideas from previous years below:

• little felt Easter egg bags

• decorated Easter eggs (polystyrene eggs)

 

• Easter egg cupcakes

• Easter egg slide cards

• Easter banner

• bunny-sized Easter bonnets (idea can be adapted to human sized Easter bonnets)

• mini moopy bunnies

• wee bunnies by weewonderful

We hope you will join us on our Egg-ceptional Egg-xtravaganza, see you on Friday for day one.

Cheers

Fiona x

long time...no blog...

...but it is summer and school holidays.

It's been about a month since my last post. We've been enjoying the laziness of school holidays. I love having my girls home.

Christmas was nice and relaxing.

New Year was... nice and relaxing. We were at Hawks Nest for about a week... nice and relaxing. We packed a picnic and headed for Jimmy's Beach for New Years eve to watch the fireworks over at Nelson Bay. There were hundreds of people on Jimmy's Beach (busiest I've ever seen it!), many bonfires were blazing. It was a great night.

January has been nice and relaxing. Many trips to the beach, catching up with friends, movies, shopping, staying cool during our hot weather.

Here's a photo taken at Balmoral Beach. There have been several days spent sitting under the trees chatting with friends while we watch the kids enjoy themselves.

 

I have created a few projects during January. CHA-W 09 is just around the corner, and I have sent a few projects off to the US for the Maya Road stand. Here's one of the my mini albums... using a new chipboard suitcase book. You can view the new Maya Road catalog HERE.

 

I still have lots of photos on my camera which I haven't checked yet, once I have I'll post more project photos very soon.

These little cupcake cards {below} were made for the Maya Road Design Team blog. We, the design team members, are now writing posts on the blog. Every few days a new post is published over there. So far there have been lots of great ideas, so make sure you bookmark it and visit regularly.

I've used the Maya Road Cupcakes stamp set. Instructions are on the MR DT blog.

 

 

 

I LOVE this set of stamps, and I actually have ONE SPARE. So I'm going to start the new year off with a RAK. If you leave me a comment here on this post by January 31, your name will be included in the draw for this set of MAYA ROAD CUPCAKES STAMPS. I'll post anywhere in the world! edited: thanks for all your lovely comments, I now have a winner.

Good luck, have fun and thanks for visiting my blog.

Cheers

Fiona x